Zac smack in form to win Q Squash title

Defending champion Zac Alexander lifted the Q Squash Ltd Queensland Open, PSA M5 title for a second successive year after defeating fellow Australian Joshua Larkin in the final held at the Nerang Squash and Fitness Centre on the Gold Coast, Australia – lifting his ninth PSA World Tour title in his last 10 tournaments.

The World No.83’s incredible form had seen him win 38 of his previous 39 matches coming into the final, with only a solitary defeat against New Zealand’s Paul Coll during August’s Australian Open bringing an unbeaten year to an end for the man from Brisbane.

Larkin, meanwhile, was also in good form himself having finished as the runner-up at the North Coast Open last month and secured his final berth after a brutal five-game battle with compatriot Matthew Hopkin.

Alexander, who beat David Ilich, Dimitri Steinmann and Patrick Rooney to reach the final, edged the opener by a narrow two-point margin, before Larkin fared better in the second game to draw level.

Number two seed Alexander reestablished his lead though as he took the third and he kept up the assault in game four to wrap up an 11-9, 6-11, 11-8, 11-7 triumph to earn the 23rd PSA World Tour title of his career.

In the Women’s event, New Zealand’s Amanda Landers-Murphy took the plaudits after producing a splendid come from behind victory against Milnay Louw of South Africa.

Landers-Murphy, the World No.78, found herself two games down after a fine start from Louw, but changed up her game to nullify Louw’s attacking intent, with the approach paying dividends as she took the next three successive games, claiming a 7-11, 11-13, 11-9, 11-7, 11-9 victory to lift her first Tour crown since May 2015.

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